Surprise!
by westernlove
Summary: When a girl shows up in the neighborhood looking for the Curtis's, Ponyboy gets the surprise of his life. I'm terrible at summery's, but the story's good, so please read! Rated T, just in case. Takes place after the events of the book. COMPLETE!
1. Chapter 1

Okay guys, this is my first Outsiders fanfic, so please be nice, please, please, please R&R.

I sat out in the vacant lot, puffing of a cigarette. The wind blew cold in my face and a shiver ran down my back. I heard a siren, which wasn't uncommon in my neighborhood.

"Ponyboy Curtis, what do you think you're doing out here?"

I glanced over to see Sodapop coming over. He had a grin on his face and his fists were jammed into the pockets of his jeans. He sat down next to me and I offered him the cigarette. He brushed off my offer. I knew that Soda didn't like to smoke much. Soda looked at me with a cocked eyebrow and a crooked grin on his face.

"What?" I asked suspiciously.

"Darry's looking for ya," he told me.

I groaned. "Aw man, what'd I do now?"

Soda gave me one of his wild looks and then started laughing softly. I crossed my arms over my chest and took a long drag on my smoke.

"I don't see what's so funny," I mumbled.

Just then I heard screaming coming from somewhere near by and I sat straight up.

"Get away from me!"

"Come on, baby, don't be like that!"

Soda and I were instantly on our feet and running towards the ruckus. We turned the corner to find a girl surrounded by four socs. The girl was short with dark hair. I couldn't see her face. She had a blade in one hand and she was holding it out in a menacing way.

"I'm warning you!" the girl exclaimed.

"Let her be!" Soda shouted.

The socs looked up, evil grins spreading across their faces. They started to walk towards us, but one stayed behind, keeping his eyes trained on the girl.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here, Dave?" one of the boys taunted.

"Looks like a couple of punk greasers trying to be heroes," another answered.

I looked around for something to use as a weapon. A piece of pipe? A broken bottle? Anything that might save me from being beat into the dust? Nothing. I glanced at Soda. He seemed cool. His hands were still stuffed in his pockets and he was resting all of his weight on his left leg.

"Leave the girl alone," Soda warned.

"Or what?" one of the socs demanded, "You ain't got a blade, so what are you gonna do?"

"You two get outa here, this is my fight," the girl said.

I wasn't looking at her, but I could tell by the way she talked that she was tough. I kept my eyes on the socs. I really didn't like the idea of three against two. Suddenly I heard a howl and my eyes turned towards the noise. The girl had the other soc in her arms. One of her hands was around his waist and the other was holding her blade to his throat. How had she gotten him in that position so quickly? I shook my head, bewildered.

"Now, unless you want your friend her to get it good, then you'll get out of her," the girl said.

The socs hesitated a moment before nodding and walking off. The girl waited till they were out of sight before she let the last of go. He ran off into the darkness. The girl walked up to us and I finally got a look at her face. It was pretty. She had freckles across her nose and her eyes green-gray eyes shimmered in the moonlight. She was defiantly tuff. She brushed a stray strand of hair from her face.

"You didn't have to come to my rescue," she told us.

"Well, it just looked like you could use a little help," Soda noted.

"Well all you did was distract them, but I'm grateful for the help. By any chance would you know where I could find where the Curtis's live?" the girl asked.

I was a little shocked at the question. We didn't know this girl and she clearly didn't know who we were, otherwise she would be asking.

"Of course we do, we are Curtis's," Soda spoke.

"Really?"

"Yep, I'm Sodapop and this is my brother, Ponyboy."

When the girl heard my name her eyes drifted to me and the slightest smile toyed at her lips. I furrowed my brow. What was she looking at?

"Of course, I should have known from your face," she said.

When neither Soda nor I answered the girl licked her lips.

"I'm, Pepper Curtis, I'm your twin sister Ponyboy," the girl said.

Okay, I know it was sort, and not that good, but trust me, it gets better.


	2. Chapter 2

Alright, here's chapter two. Enjoy and please R&R.

I just stared at her for a moment, trying to figure out if I was hearing things or if she actually said that she was my twin sister. Finally Soda broke the silence.

"Um…hate to burst your bubble, but we don't have a sister," he said, "It's just me, Pony and Darry."

Pepper shook her head. "I have proof."

She walked over to a purse that was lying on the ground and she picked it up, digging around inside before pulling out a wadded piece of paper. She handed it to Soda and I leaned over to see what it said. It was a birth certificate. There was the name at the bottom. Pepper Curtis.

"So? I'm sure there's a lot of people named Curtis," Soda spoke.

I wasn't as sure as he was. This girl was born in the same hospital as I was, on the same date, and just ten minutes after I was. Pepper cocked an eyebrow, a hint of a sparkle in her eyes. As I continued to look at her face things started to pop out at me. She had the same eyes as I did, her nose looked like mine and her hair was the exact same color as mine was. I was getting a little creeped out. Maybe this girl was my twin sister. Soda didn't seem as convinced as I was.

"If you're Pony's sister then Darry would know. He was six when Pone was born which means that he'd know if there were two instead of one," Soda said.

That confused me a little, but I didn't argue when Soda grabbed my arm and pulled me down the street. Pepper followed. I had never seen Soda act like this before. He had always been happy-go-lucky and carefree, but now he seemed…worried.

Even before we were up the stairs to our house Soda was screaming for Darry.

"Darry!"

Soda dragged me into the house and I found Darry sitting on a chair, his face hidden behind a newspaper. He looked up and when he saw me he jumped up from where he was sitting.

"Ponyboy Curtis, I should skin you alive, why did you…"

He stopped in mid-sentence, his eyes fixed on something behind me. I swiveled my head around to see Pepper standing in the doorway, staring at Darry. I turned my attention back to my oldest brother. He took a step forward and then walked right past me and Soda and right to Pepper. He just looked at her for what seemed like the longest time.

"Darry this is, Pepper," I said quietly.

Darry nodded. "I know."

His voice was quiet and soft. I had never heard him talk like that before. His eyes seemed to be staring right into Pepper's soul.

"You know?!" Soda exclaimed, "Then she really is…"

"Ponyboy's twin sister," Darry finished.

Suddenly Darry grabbed Pepper up in a tight embrace. She didn't seem to mind; in fact I thought I saw a tear leak from her eye. When Darry set her down she sniffled and a slight smile came to her lips.

"How did you…" Darry started, but Pepper cut him off.

"It took a lot of digging, but I finally found out," she said.

"Will someone please explain what's going on?!" Soda yelled.

I looked at him. I had never seen him like this before. His eyes were huge and his face was taunt. Poor guy. Even I wasn't as stressed out as he was, and I was the one finding out that I had a long lost twin sister.

Darry had us all sit down before he started to explain. He exhaled slowly and wiped a hand over his face.

"It happened the night that Mom and Dad took me to the hospital cause I broke my arm. Mom had hired a babysitter for the three of you before she had left. Soda, you were only two which is why you don't remember this. Anyways, when Mom and Dad brought me home the house was on fire and the babysitter was being taken away in an ambulance for smoke inhalation. Soda, you and Pony were outside with a couple of the neighbors, but Pepper wasn't anywhere in sight. When the fire was out the firefighters said that there was no remains of Pepper's body, but because she was still a baby that that was somewhat normal. We all thought you were dead, until now," Darry explained.

All eyes turned to Pepper. Her lips were tight and her eyes were staring at something far off.

"What was the babysitter's name?" she asked softly.

Darry seemed to be searching his memory and then his eyes flashed for a moment.

"Jenkins, I remember that cause we never saw her again after the fire," he answered.

Pepper closed her eyes and nodded slowly. We all waited anxiously, hoping for an explanation.

"It all makes sense now," she said, "When I was old enough to start noticing that I looked nothing like my mom I started asking questions. She kept telling me that I was adopted, and I believed it…at first. A couple years later I was thirteen and I demanded proof. When she didn't even have any adoption papers I knew that something was wrong. I ran away a year later and decided to find out the truth. For fourteen years I was Pepper Jenkins. Just recently I was able to dig up enough information to find out who I really was. I found at that Mom and Dad died, but that I still had three living brothers. I came here to see if it was really true."

A tear traced down my cheek and I suppressed a slight smile. It was all true. Pepper really was my twin sister. I glanced at Soda and Darry. They were crying too. Darry had never really struck me as the crying type, but I could tell these were tears of joy. Suddenly Darry wrapped his arms around all of us in one big hug. We were all bawling like babies and it was the best thing that had ever happened to me.

*Wipes tear away* So sorry, but it just hit me pretty hard. So anyways that is the end of chapter two. Please R&R and tell me what you think, also any suggestions that you might have for the next chapter will be taken into consideration.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter three yay! Enjoy and please, please, please R&R.**

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We all walked into the house, out arms loaded with bags. We had taken Pepper shopping for some clothes and other things. It was actually really strange. None of us had ever been shopping with a girl and it kinda made me uncomfortable. Soda didn't mind cause he got to flirt with a couple of girls that he had spotted.

Pepper wouldn't get a dress, no matter how much Darry tried to convince her. She bought blue jeans, white T-shirts and sneakers. She also got a leather jacket that made her look real tuff. I was really starting to like having a twin sister. Pepper wasn't like any girl I had ever met. Her hair was pulled up in a ponytail and she slouched. She didn't wear any eye make-up and she carried a blade, a really tuff blade. It had a white handle and the sharpest edge that I ad ever seen.

We dumped the bags on the couch and Darry placed a fist on his hip, running a hand through his hair.

"Now, the question is, where does Pepper sleep?" he asked.

"I can sleep out here on the couch," Pepper suggested.

Darry hesitated for a moment. I knew what he was thinking. That couch had to be the lumpiest thing ever; there was no way Pepper would get any sleep.

"Really, I don't mind," Pepper assured him.

Darry sighed and nodded. "Just till I can build you your own room."

I bit my lip as it hit me. We didn't have the money to add on another room, how was Darry gonna manage it? I shook my head every so slightly.

"Well I'm gonna change out of these dirt clothes," Pepper said.

"You can use my room," Darry said.

Pepper nodded and grabbed up one of the bags, walked off into Darry's room. I heard the door shut.

"Darry, we don't have the money to build another room," I voiced.

"We'll just have to make out, Pony," he told me.

"I can quit school and get a job, she's my twin sister after all," I said.

"Ponyboy, don't be silly, she's all of our sister, and besides you are going to finish high school," Darry said, "That reminds me, I need to get Pepper enrolled tomorrow."

"Oh no you don't!"

I looked up to see Pepper coming out of the room. She was dressed in blue jeans with the cuffs rolled up, one of her white shirts, black sneakers and she was pulling on the leather jacket. Her hair was newly brushed and looked like she had just pulled it up again.

"I ain't going to school don't need it," she argued.

"Pepper as long as you live under my roof you do as I say, and I say you're going to school," Darry said.

Pepper crossed her arms over her chest and fell onto the couch with a frown. I couldn't help but smile. It was going to be so cool having a girl around the house. Then I realized that I wasn't the youngest anymore.

Just then the door opened and Two-Bit walked in. Pepper jumped up from the couch. Two-Bit gave a suspicious grin, his eyes locked on Pepper.

"Who are you? Soda's new girlfriend?" Two-Bit asked.

Pepper cocked an eyebrow.

"Who are you, Soda's clown?" she demanded in a sarcastic tone.

Two-Bit laughed and staggered over to us. I couldn't tell if he was drunk. Two-Bit always acted like he was boozed up, so it was hard to tell if he really was or not.

"Pepper, this is Two-Bit," Soda said, "Two-Bit this is Pepper…Pony's twin sister."

At first Two-bit looked a little confused, but then he broke out into laughter. When he saw that none of us were laughing he stopped and looked at each one of us in tern.

"You're serious?" he demanded.

Darry nodded and told him Pepper's story. When he had finished Pepper seemed pretty comfortable around our pal and Two-Bit was hollering and slapping me on the back.

"So, you got a boyfriend?" Two-Bit asked.

This question didn't surprise me. Although Two-Bit did prefer blonds he would take any pretty face. Pepper seemed annoyed by this question.

"Button it, or I'll glue your lips together," Pepper said.

Two-Bit whooped. "I like em feisty!"

After Two-Bit attempted a few more tries with Pepper we finally kicked him out. Pepper looked at me.

"Not two bright, is he?" she asked.

I shook my head with a grin. "No, but ol' Two-Bit is a great guy to have around. He's tough and he'll watch your back."

"I'll keep that in mind."

* * *

Later that night I lay in bed with Soda's arm wrapped around my chest. I could tell he was awake cause of the way he was breathing.

"Soda, do you like Pepper?" I asked.

He didn't answer for a moment. "Course I like her, she's my sister. What kinda question is that?"

"Well before you didn't seem to like her too much," I noted.

"That was before I knew she was really our sister."

"How come you didn't talk at dinner?"

"Look, Pony, if I tell ya will ya shut up and let me sleep?"

I nodded.

"I alright, the reason I didn't like her before and still don't like her too well is because I'm not used to it. All my life, I've only had to look after you and now there's two of you that I have to watch out for," Soda said.

"Darry likes her," I said.

"Yeah well Darry's different. He's had to look out for both of us, so one mores no big deal."

I furrowed my brow. That didn't make much sense. I sighed. Even if Soda didn't like Pepper too much, I sure did. She was funny and nice and I had always wanted a sister. It had always just been me, Darry and Soda; there was never a girl that needed special care or nothing. I liked the idea of being able to walk around with Pepper and say that she was my sister.

It wasn't long before I head Soda's breathing become heavy and even. I yawned and snuggled closer to my brother. I closed my eyes and dropped off to sleep.

* * *

I woke up in the morning to the smell of bacon and eggs. Soda was still asleep so I wiggled out from under his arm and walked out to the kitchen. Pepper was standing over the stove, dressed the same way she had been the night before. She looked over her shoulder at me and smiled.

"Hey Pony, breakfast will be ready in a minute," she told me.

I nodded and let out a huge yawn, stretching my arms over my head. That's when I realized that I was only dressed in my boxers. I felt my face get hot and I rushed back to my room, tossing on a pair of jeans and a T-shirt. Well that was embarrassing. I pulled on my sneakers and ran into the dresser in the process, waking Soda up. He sat up and looked at me through squinted eyelids.

"Pony, what are you doing?" he demanded.

"Getting my shoes on," I answered.

And with that I walked back out into the kitchen. Darry was just coming out of his room, pulling a black T-shirt over his head. I heard the screen door slam shut and Two-Bit and Steve came running into the house, hollering and laughing. They came into the kitchen and stopped, staring at Pepper. That made me mad. Pepper wasn't something that people could just gawk at, she was my sister.

"What'd I tell ya, Steve, pretty as a picture," Two-Bit said.

Pepper shot him a harsh glare and he let out a howl of laughter. My ears got hot as I got even angrier.

"Two-Bit you lay off her," I snapped.

He looked at me, his face masked with shocked. I was a little surprised myself. I had never been so mad before, so why was I now? It was Pepper. I felt like I had to protector no matter what was happening.

"Its fine, Pony," Pepper assured me.

Two-Bit shrugged off the way I had yelled at him and now he was laughing and carrying on again. I walked over to the counter and snatched a piece of bacon from a plate that Pepper had set out. I shoved it into my mouth and chomped on it. It was real good.

Soda finally came out of the room. He was fully dressed and he his usual reckless grin plastered on his face. Two-Bit came over to me and rubbed my hair.

"Hey Pony, if you and Pepper are twins then how come she's so pretty and your so not?" he asked with a loud laugh.

I tackled him to the ground and we rolled on the floor, knocking over chairs and shouting. Darry grabbed the back of my shirt and pulled me off of Two-Bit, who was still laughing like a hyena.

"Pony, I still gotta get Pepper enrolled so you get off Two-Bit and get in the truck," Darry ordered.

I nodded and grabbed Pepper's hand, pulling her out of the house, barely managing to avoid stepping on Steve, who decided he was gonna take a nap on the floor. When we got outside Pepper started laughing softly.

"I think I'm gonna like living with you guys," she said.

She glanced back at the house and a mischievous grin tugged at the corner of her lip.

"Does Two-Bit have a girlfriend?" she asked.

I stared at her for a minute. Was she serious? I wasn't exactly sure how to answer that question.

"Uh…Two-Bit always has a girlfriend," I told her, "I think it's Shelly this week, oh no, Shelly was last week, maybe it's Darcy."

Pepper laughed. And I gave her a look.

"Yesterday you looked like you wanted to bite his head off," I reminded her.

"Yeah well, maybe I changed my mind."

Darry came out before I had a chance to respond. We piled into the truck and were off to school.

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**Sorry that the chapter have been kinda short, but what do you think? Love it? Eh? Hate it? Burn it? Please let me know and I'll** **update the new chapter soon. Again, if you have a request for the next chapter, or any chapter let me know and I'll consider** **it.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four! We are moving on! Please, Please, Please review! It means a lot to me.**

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It was a good thing we got there early, cause it took awhile to get Pepper enrolled. Darry had to go through all this junk with showing Pepper's birth certificate and all that kinda stuff. When that was all done and good Darry left and I started to show Pepper around the school. As we walked by people gave me odd looks, as if wonder why I was walking around with a really pretty girl. Yes I'll admit it, I think my sister's pretty. Is there anything wrong with that?

Darry had managed to get Pepper a locker right next to mine. I helped her with her new books and then I slammed the locker shut. That's when I heard the menacing growl.

"Hey, Greaser, who's the babe?"

I swiveled around to see two socs coming our way. I knew them. Danny and Kyle. They were in one of my classes, and I hated them. Instinctively I stepped in front of Pepper in a protective way.

"You stay away from her," I snapped.

"Hey Kyle, the Greaser's got a girlfriend," Danny laughed.

Pepper stepped out from behind me, a harsh glare on her face. Her arms were crossed and she rested all her weight on her left foot. Honestly, if she wasn't my sister, I would have been scared silly. Danny and Kyle didn't seem too scared though. They walked even closer and then Danny started circling Pepper. I felt a growl rise in the back of my throat. Pepper shot me a glance that was clear. She didn't want me to fight her battles for her. Danny reached out and started twirling his finger around Pepper's hair. It took all my willpower not to lay the guy flat. Pepper slapped his hand away.

"Don't touch me!" she spat.

Her words were dipped in venom and her face was turning red with rage. I looked around. Teenagers were still walking the halls, not even paying attention to us. This kinda thing happened at school all the time so nobody found it surprising or new.

Kyle joined in with Danny, circling and poking at my sister. I was so angry that I could spit nails. No one treated my sister like this! Ignoring Pepper's silent request I leapt forward and tackled Danny to the ground. Of course Kyle decided to help his buddy by kicking me in the side. I yelped, but still clung to Danny's neck, pulling even tighter so that all Danny could do was gasp for breath.

"Pony, stop it!"

I heard Pepper's shout, but I paid no heed. Kyle was now trying to pry my fingers away, but I wouldn't let up.

"Pony you're gonna kill him!"

Those words struck me like a tone of bricks. I loosened my grip and Kyle pulled Danny away from me and then took off running, Danny more stumbling then running. I got to my feet and winced. Boy was my side sore. Pepper came up beside me and put a hand on my shoulder.

"You were really gonna kill him, weren't you?" she asked quietly.

I nodded silently. I would have killed him. No one was gonna treat my sister the way Danny and Kyle were. Pepper exhaled slowly.

"Ponyboy, promise me that you'll never go and kill someone because of me," she said.

I hesitated at first. I wasn't sure if I would be able to keep that promise.

"Promise me," Pepper repeated.

"I promise," I told her.

Just then the bell rang and Pepper and I hurried off to class.

* * *

The day was pretty normal, nothing to get excited about. People at school found out that Pepper was my sister, and they learned real fast not to mess with either of us, cause during lunch Pepper beat the snot outta one guy, cause he was trying to pick a fight with me. I didn't really like Pepper protecting me, it was supposed to be the other way around, but as soon as that guy landed a right hook to my jaw, I was grateful Pepper was there. Man, I was gonna have some tough looking bruises in the morning.

Two-Bit took me and Pepper home after school, since he also went to our school. When we got home I noticed Darry's truck parked out front. Dang! Now I wouldn't have time to clean up before he saw me and he was gonna ask a lot of questions about my cuts and my black eye. I really didn't want him to lecture me about fighting in school. According to Darry, rumbles are one thing, but school fighting's another.

I waited outside of the house for a moment before Pepper grabbed my arm and yanked me inside.

"Come on, he's gonna find out sooner or later," she reminded me.

"Later would be good," I said.

Pepper laughed and pulled me the rest of the way in. Darry was sitting on the couch, sleeping. I gave a silent whoop. Good, now I could try and hide these bruises before he wakes up. My hopes were shattered when I stumbled over my own feet and smacked into the wall. Darry jolted into a sitting position, looking around. When he saw me he took in my features, before frowning and getting to his feet. Two words echoed in my mind over and over again.

Lecture. Dead. Lecture. Dead. Lecture. Dead.

Death by Lecture.

That was a possibility. Darry was a great brother, but when it came to his 'fatherly lectures'…let's just say I stop listening before he gets to the third word.

Darry came over to me and grabbed my chin in his hand, turning my face back and forth as he inspected the damage.

"Ponyboy Curtis, where did all these bruises come from?" he demanded.

I tried to think of some excuse and of course I went with the first one that popped into my head.

"I just ran into a wall, Darry, of course I'm gonna be bruised," I told him.

I gave myself a mental slap on the forehead. Well that was lame! Yep, I could tell by the look on Darry's face that I was gonna get a lecture that was gonna take me to my grave before my time.

"Ponyboy. Kitchen. Now," Darry said, emphasizing each word.

I slumped my shoulders and followed Darry into the kitchen. I could hear Pepper stifling a laugh as I went by.

"Thanks for the help, Sis!" I called.

"You're welcome!" she shouted back.

I couldn't help but suppress a slight grin. Pepper reminded me of a mix between Two-Bit and Soda. Sarcastic, funny, pretty. She had it all. I could see now why she was fitting into the gang so well.

When we were in the kitchen I dropped into a seat and Darry sat in front of me. Here we go.

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**Well that was chapter four. I know it was short, but the others are as well, so I really don't care. Please review and be honest. Also, the offers still up if you have something specific you would like to see in the book, please PM me and I'll consider it.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Alright chapter five. This story has almost 500 views which I am really excited about! Thanks to all of you!**

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"Ponyboy, I am really disappointed in you…"

After those few words all I heard was blah, blah, blah. I kept my eyes on Darry, but I was blocking out everything he said. I really didn't want to hear about how irresponsible I was and how I should do my best to keep out of fights. I was trying to focus on something, anything else besides Darry's lecture. When his mouth stopped moving I spoke.

"Sure, Darry, I'll be more careful about fighting," I lied.

He looked at me. "Did you even hear a word I said?"

"Nope."

As soon as the words were out of my mouth I jumped up from my seat and ran out of the room.

"Ponyboy Curtis!"

Pepper was sitting on the floor watching TV and I grabbed her arm as I ran by, pulling her up and jerking her out the door. We ran down the street and to the lot. I stopped, panting. Pepper was laughing, hunched over with her hands on her knees.

"Pony, something tells me you get into more trouble then any other person," she chuckled.

"I try," I said between breaths.

I heard footsteps behind me and I spun around, my blood turning cold. Danny and Kyle were coming towards us with five of their friends walking behind them.

"You're in our territory," I warned.

Danny laughed harshly. "Hear that boys? Sounds like the little Greaser's threatening us."

"I almost killed you before and I'll do it again," I growled, hoping to sound tough.

"I got friends with me this time, Greaser," Danny said.

My hands were shaking ever so slightly. I had to admit to myself that I was scared. I had been jumped so many times, but the gang had always showed up. I knew that Darry was mad at me, so he was probably reading the paper at home. Soda and Steve were at work on the other side of town and Two-Bit had gone to pick up a date. It was just me and Pepper. I gulped, trying not to show my fear. Danny nodded to his pals.

"Get em, boys," he commanded.

I watched in horror as two of the socs grabbed Pepper, twisting her arms behind her back. She yelped and rage boiled in my blood, masking my fear. I was leaping at the socs that were holding my sister when I was tackled from the side. Danny, Kyle and his other three friends were on top of me. Danny was sitting on my chest, digging his knee into my stomach. It hurt like heck. Kyle and another guy were holding my arms down, another soc was sitting on my legs and the other was pulling a blade from his pocket.

Fear surged through my veins and panic took hold of me. I started thrashing around, trying to throw them off of me, but to no avail. I felt the cold blade on my left arm and then pain as it ripped into my sick. I cried out. I felt warm blood running down to my wrist.

"No! Let him go!" Pepper howled.

The tip of the blade touched my neck and I froze, keeping as still as possible. I knew that if I moved an inch that the knife could go deep into my throat. I heard Pepper let out a growling yell and then I heard a cry of pain, but it wasn't from Pepper.

"Get off of him or he dies!"

Suddenly the blade left my neck and all of the socs climbed off of me. I sat up slowly to see Pepper with her switchblade pointed directly at one of the socs hearts. I shook my head to clear it of pain and fog. I would never get how she did that. One minute two socs had her pinned and the next she was ready to kill them in an instant.

I got to my feet and cradled my bleeding arm. The wound didn't look too deep, so I didn't think that it would need stitches, but it still hurt like crazy. I trained my eyes on Pepper. She released the soc and gave him a firm shove to get him moving. Danny, Kyle and their friends slowly back away. Danny was scowling at Pepper.

"We're gonna get you for this!" he shouted.

"I'll be waiting!" Pepper called as they disappeared from sight.

Pepper rushed to me and took hold of my arm, looking it over. She started to pull me back to the house.

"Come on, Darry's gonna want to look at that," she said.

"Pepper, thanks," I said.

"Anytime, just please don't make a habit of it, cause I don't want to always have to save your sorry butt," she said with a bright grin.

I laughed. "I'll try my best."

Darry was waiting for me when we got to the house.

"Ponyboy, I'm tired of…"

He stopped when he saw the blood that was dripping from my gash. He came over to me and took me to the bathroom without a word. I sat on the toilet while he cleaned it out. It hurt and I had to bite down on my tongue to keep from crying out. After my wound was bandaged Darry looked at me.

"Pony, how do you manage to get into so much trouble?" he demanded

I shook my head. I really didn't have an answer for that. Darry exhaled slowly and then walked out of the bathroom, leaving me sitting there. Was Darry mad at me? I knew I could be a pain in the butt, but could he really be mad at me just cause I couldn't help but get into a fight? Or was he still mad over me not paying attention to his lecture? I wasn't sure, but Darry was mad at something. I could tell. He always has this harsh look on his face when he's made and he's always sighing deeply.

Pepper poked her head in and then came in with a smile on her face.

"Hey, how's the arm?" she asked.

I looked down at my bandaged arm.

"Fine," I answered.

"Darry's mad, huh?" she said.

I nodded and stood, walking out of the bathroom with Pepper behind me.

* * *

The rest of the day was the way it usually is. Soda came home and we had dinner, then the gang came over to watch some TV.

Pepper stood up from her seat on the floor and stretched out her muscles.

"I'm gonna go fro a walk," she announced.

Darry seemed hesitant for a moment before he spoke.

"I don't know, Pepper, it's dark and Pony told me about how those guys said that they'd be back," he said.

"Come on, Darry," Pepper pleaded, "I got my blade and I can take care of myself."

"I'll go with her," Two-Bit offered.

His words were slurred and we all knew that he had been drinking on that date that he had been on. He wouldn't be any help in a fight; in fact he'd probably just get himself hurt.

"Fine, you can go, Pepper, but be back in an hour," Darry gave in.

"Thanks."

I watched as Pepper walked out of the house, slamming the screen door behind her. I turned my attention back to the TV.

* * *

"I don't like it, it's been two hours and I told her one hour," Darry nearly shouted.

"Relax, Dare, she probably just lost track of time," Soda said.

Darry was pacing back and forth, his hands stuffed in his back pockets. Soda and I were sitting on the couch. The gang was still here and Pepper hadn't come back yet.

"I still don't like it, I'm gonna go find her," Darry told us.

"I'm coming too, and so is Soda," I said, jumping up from my seat.

"I am?" Soda asked, looking up at me.

"Yes you are," I told him.

"Okay, Steve, Two-Bit you wanna come?"

"Why not, I got nothing better to do," Steve said.

And so the five of us walked out of the house and around the neighborhood, searching Pepper. I started to get a sick feeling in my stomach, like something was wrong. I hadn't been too worried at first, but now…

"Darry, I think we should check the lot," I said quietly.

We all ran to the lot, Darry in front. My oldest brother suddenly stopped, making Two-Bit run into him. I saw why Darry had stopped. In the middle of the lot lay a figure. My heart almost stopped and I started shaking. Darry was the first to move. He ran to the figure and I followed right behind him. We knelt down next to Pepper, Darry propping her up against his shoulder. Her hair was matted with blood and her face was bruised. Blood trickled from her split lip and she had gashes all over her body.

"Steve, go call 911," Darry ordered.

Steve ran towards our house as fast as he could. We were all huddled around Pepper. My worry was suddenly replaced by rage and I clenched my teeth together. Darry gave Pepper a gentle shake and brushed a strand of hair from her battered face.

"Pepper? Can you hear me?" he whispered gently.

Pepper's eyes fluttered open and she winced in pain.

"Darry, that you?" she asked.

"Yeah, it's me, don't move okay?" Darry said.

"Pepper, it was Danny and Kyle, wasn't it?" I said.

"Y-yeah," she stammered.

I clenched and unclenched my fists. I was gonna kill em! I was gonna kill em! Tears painted my cheeks as I watched my sister lay against Darry, her face scrunched up in pain. Steve came running back, his face flushed with strain.

"Ambulance is on its way," he panted.

Sure enough I heard sirens wailing in the distance. Before long it showed up and two paramedics jumped out. They started checking her out as she lay on the ground. She looked up at me through slits in her eyes.

"P-Pony," she whispered.

She reached up and I grasped her hand in mine, holding it tightly.

"Yeah?" I said.

"R-remember your…p-promise n-no matter…what happens," she said.

A painful lump formed in the back of my throat. I couldn't stop the whimper that escaped my lips. I gave Pepper's hand a tight squeeze.

"I won't," I whispered, my voice cracking.

Then the paramedics took Pepper away from me and loaded her into the ambulance. I still sat there on the ground, my hand raised as if I were still clutching my sister's hand. Tears continued to stream down my cheeks as I watched the flashing lights faded away. Darry grabbed my under the arms and pulled me to my feet.

"Come on, Pony, we're going to the hospital," he said.

I was only slightly aware of Darry leading me towards the truck. The whole gang managed to squeeze into the truck and Darry started off for the hospital. I just sat there, my lips trembling.

When we got to the hospital the girl behind the desk told us that they were operating on Pepper. Apparently she had been bleeding internally and they had to operate immediately. We sat in the waiting room, hoping to hear about Pepper soon. Soda was stroking my hair, telling me that Pepper was gonna be fine, but I barely heard a word of it. My mind was cloudy and it was as if I had entered another world. My heart ached with pain at the thought of my sister being dead. It hurt worse then when I found out that Mom and Dad had died.

Finally, after what seemed like eternity, a doctor came into the room. We all stood.

"Mr. Curtis?" he asked.

"That's me," Darry, Soda and me all said at the same time.

The doctor didn't question it, he just went on.

"Your sister's still on the critical list, but she made it through the operation just fine," the doctor said.

We all sighed in relief. It was as if the weight on my heart was suddenly removed. I couldn't help but smile. Pepper was still alive. On the critical list, yes, but still alive.

"Can we see her now?" Darry asked.

"Yes, although she still might be pretty drowsy. She's in room 334," the doctor said.

Darry thanked him and me, Darry, Soda, Two-Bit and Steve all road the elevator up to see Pepper. She was lying in the bed, almost as white as the sheets. There were tubes in her arms and in her nose, but it was such a relief to see her chest rising and falling steadily.

I took a seat beside the bed and grabbed her hand in mine. Her eyes fluttered and locked on me. A slight smile touched her pale lips.

"Will you keep your promise?" she asked in a whisper.

I nodded and whipped a tear from my face.

"Yeah, I will, you just get better and come home soon," I said.

"It's the only thing on my mind."

**The End**

* * *

**So what did you think? Love it? Hate it? Please let me know, and also let me know if you want more Pepper stories.**


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